


A little bit of cold

by Fighting_for_Creativity



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Cold, F/M, Huddling For Warmth, M/M, Matchmaker Natasha Romanov, Not Beta Read, POV Bucky Barnes, Steve Rogers Feels, Team as Family, Tony Stark Feels, blink and you miss it - Freeform, pinning idiots
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-31
Updated: 2019-12-31
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:20:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22051678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fighting_for_Creativity/pseuds/Fighting_for_Creativity
Summary: The Avengers went on a trip together.For team bonding purposes and vacation.However, the weather thought snow was a good way to achieve a bit more.
Relationships: Ironshield, James "Bucky" Barnes/Natasha Romanov, Natasha Romanov & Tony Stark, Steve Rogers/Tony Stark, Steve& Bucky Barnes Friendship, Team being a family, Tony & Bucky friendship - Relationship, Winterwidow
Kudos: 49
Collections: Bucky Barnes Bingo 2019





	A little bit of cold

**Author's Note:**

> Fill for Square Y 3 Huddling for warmth.

The chill of December was normal, was even expected. Heck, snow and ice just about belonged into the late November early December days. Why the April thought it to be good to re-invite snow around, was a mystery to Bucky. If his memory served him right, snow always had melted and was long gone when April came around in his youth.

Not that he wasn’t still very young. At least he looked like twenty-fourish instead of someone in their late nineties. But that wasn’t what was bothering him right now. It may have been part of the problem, but not the real deal. The temperature had dropped from 68°F to 14° F overnight. Which was part one of the problem. Part two was, that neither he nor anyone else had come prepared for being snowed in.

The team had decided to make a trip together. At first, Bucky didn’t want to join. But after some subtle begging from Natalia, not that he would call her out on that, and an overload of puppy dog eyes, courtesy of his very best friend and the co-leader of the Avengers, he’d given in. How Steve had been able to wrap Tony into this was another mystery to Bucky. They had checked the weather report three times each, all sourced had stated it to be a sunny warm weekend, around 67°F to 77°F. Which was the reason no one considered packing warm clothes, despite their tactical gear.

Be it as it may, nothing changed the fact that they were snowed in, deeply.

Steve’s voice interrupted Bucky’s musing: “Anything yet, Tony?”

“Do YOU think I’d still be freezing my ass off if that’d be the case, stars ‘n’ stripes,” hissed Tony agitated. He shivered violently for a moment. Then Tony pressed his hands into his eye sockets. Anyone who knew the smaller brunet could see the irritation, stress and the cold affecting Tony. The sleep deprivation catching upon him. The worst was probably that he hadn’t had any coffee yet. 

To be honest, Bucky could understand him. Counting this time, it had been the twenty-first time Steve had asked Tony that since breakfast… an hour ago.

Also, Tony had been the only one of them all, to have no real tactical and therefore body temperature regulating gear, the reason why he sat as close to the fireplace as possible. A bunch of blankets hanging loosely of the genius shoulders, while he tried to modify their phones to get signal. 

He could also understand Stevie. He was uncomfortable as well. It wasn’t that either of them were cold, it was the chill induced memories plaguing them. He remembered vaguely that Steve has never been good with the cold. As a child because each winter could have been his last, in his teens because it rendered him bedridden, depending on his savings as he couldn’t take a job. 

Bucky remembered that he once had loved the winter. He had been warm -feeling too hot in the summer always way too hot- and able to relax easily with his siblings. But he also remembered hating the winter for being so cruel to his best friend. After his fall, he learned to fear the cold. A slight shudder ran down his spine.

While his best friend and the man he started to see as another one, bicker back and forth, Natalia had slid over to him. In a low voice, only pickable with enchanted hearing she asked in Russian: “ **_Is it the cold, or the snow?”_ **

That was something he liked about her so much. She understood.

“Cold”, he said into the room.

Which efficiently stopped Steve and Tony from ripping each other a new one, again. In the back of his mind, he wondered when those two would get their act together and finally start dating. Preferably soon. Bucky really didn’t mind either of them coming for his opinion about the other, but he minded their hurt and bleeding hearts.

Confusion softened the lines around Tony’s eyes and mouth. He tilted his head a bit to the side. Eyes sharp, but straight through Bucky. Tony’s body paused completely. Everyone on the team knew what that was. That was Tony evaluating the situation and coming to at least a billion different solutions for it.

Steve looked yearningly at the small man, then at the blankets. After a moment's hesitation, his blue eyes met Bucky’s grey blues.

“How about,” began the blonde slowly, shyly even. “How about… I mean we’re all cold. How about we huddle together to preserve body heat?”

Before anyone else stood the change to argue otherwise, Natasha strode towards the fireplace, taking a couple of the blankets from Tony’s still shivering body, draping herself in one, sat down beside the genius and pressed the closed she could. She soon was followed by Clint, Sam and Bruce. When everyone was seated, only Bucky and Steve missing, Bucky gave his best friend an encouraging smile, before he nodded to the place right next to Tony still open. Steve blushed faintly before a goofy smile replaced his nervous expression and he went over to take his place. 

Bucky checked all windows once again before he felt comfortable enough to sit next to Steve in this big puppy pile. Somehow a bit later, Sam and Clint ended behind Bruce, who placed himself halfway laying in front of Tony, adding a thought here and there whenever Tony got a bit carried away with what he did.

Natasha had her head on Tony’s shoulder, delicate finger rubbing gently against the knots in Tony’s back. Bucky himself touched a small part of Tony’s back, as he had thrown his arm around his best friend's waist.

Steve stole uncertain glances every now and then. The pink never leaving his cheeks. Reminding Bucky of the child Steven had been. The pink stayed even when the wind picked up and harsh cold air waved in from between cracks and unisolated parts. The pile of people pressed closer together, rendering Tony unable to continue his work for the moment.

“Guys… I uh appreciate the warmth, cause I finally stopped shivering, but this way I can’t work on that part of the phone.”

“Tony… I think… I mean I doubt the team would disagree, if you take a short break. Like allow yourself ten minutes huddling time. That way you can absorb a bit warmth, and get more comfortable… to work better afterward- that’s what I wanted to say,” stumbled Steve over his words. If it wasn’t so damn sad that the two hadn’t gotten it on yet, it would be the cutest attempt at taking care of Tony without seeing to be too caring.

Tony angled his body more towards Steve, moving as much as the pile allowed him, He studied Steves face an indefinite amount of time, making Steve anxious, which resulted in him getting agitated, old protective instincts blaring alarm. Suddenly Tony leaned a bit forward, placing a soft kiss to the corner of Steve’s mouth before he laid the taken apart phone down. Then he shuffled a bit, disturbing the others much, until he was half sitting in Steve’s lap, his right side brushing against the point where Bucky was pressed against Steve. 

Bucky saw Natasha's sly smile and knew she had planned something along this. However, she also shifted closer again, filling the space. Where Bucky’s hand had brushed against the soft fabric of Tony’s t-shirt before, now he felt the strange but familiar texture of kevlar alla Stark.

A feeling of content and happiness spread through Bucky as he took in that his family was safe and comfortable. He was happy with each others presence. 

They stayed like that for the rest of the day. Only occasionally one or two getting up to go to the restroom or bringing food and drinks to the pile. At one point Tony had dozed of. Bruce followed not an hour later. Clint and Sam were next. Bucky was pretty sure, both Nat and Steve only pretended to be asleep at this point.

Shrugging internally, Bucky did as the others. 

When morning came, the temperature finally rising again, they all stayed as they’d been, pretending that it was still the day before. That it was still way too cold.

If weeks later, they found each other in common places all over the compound in the middle of the night, dragging blankets from the couches, bringing food and drinks, huddling and cuddling close together, they all pretended that the heaters in their respective rooms had broken.

Everyone very well aware, that that wouldn’t, couldn’t happen.

But anyway, whose business but theirs was it after all?


End file.
